Weight Watchers people

jenbridges

:flowerforyou:

130annie

I loved it when they used to give you menus, that is some while ago now. ....On the menus, food portioning, which was a good way of teaching you.....

mcarter99

I have a few friends on WW and they haven't lost much weight. One friend is 200 lbs and has only lost 10lbs in 6 months. The other friend started at 250 and a year later is around 220. So, based on my experiences with the program, it doesn't work.

In my opinion, why would you pay money for something similar to MFP when MFP is free? If you want support and accountability, get a friend to weigh you in every week. Why waste your money? Use it to buy yourself a new wardrobe when you lose the weight using MFP.

I think a good reason to pay WW when MFP is free is because WW has a formal plan and MFP has a lot of misinformed people parroting myths and half-truths and just bad advice.

WW is also good for those who don't know how to eat right. It teaches you about a healthy balanced diet and it has components to deal with all the rest that comes with it-- exercise, mental/emotional barriers, etc.

And points is an easier concept for a lot of people. Look at all the confusion here with BMR and TDEE and netting and calorie goals and 1200. It's simple to just tell someone "You get 28 points. Here are the points values." Then late at night when they're wondering if they have 'room' for that second beer, they can just think - "It'll cost 4 points. I'm at 32 already. I better not." Instead of, "It's 135 calories. I'm at 1679 already. That would put me at... oh hell, I'll figure it out tomorrow, gimme the beer."

brittldb78

WW works, but it's not cheap. MPF is free.

montana_girl

I really don't understand doing both. Weight Watchers is trying to trick you into eating healthy by making vegetables free, while MFP is based on facts.

There are quite a few people on here doing both. I'm not sure of their reasons, but mine is quite simple. I lost 113 pounds on WW following their program. I love the philosphy behind the program, I love the meetings (and my awesome WW Leader), and I like that I am accountable and have to weigh in.

For me, I struggled when I got to Lifetime. I struggled with the fact that even at Lifetime I still had to accountable, track, and extercise... after 6 1/2 years, I wanted to be done. I just didn't have the right mindset. And about this same time they changed to the new Points Plus program and I had problem adjusting to the new program. Again, just me, not the program. So someone suggested counting calories. I found I enjoyed MFP, so I cotinue to follow the WW program with the exception I am counting calories instead of points. It worked to get me back on track and I have been able to maintain my goal weight for two years.

bananaface222

ww works ive lost 3 and half stone with them and still losing it doesnt feel like a diet like this as u do get a lot of 0 pp= weeklys you can have takeaways and wine and still lose its a liveable plan healthy eating plan for good not a diet

mocha106

I am a lifetime member of WW. I lost 76 lbs in one year using their program. WW teaches you about making smarter decisions when it comes to food and controlling my portions. As they change their plan from time to time, I found that I wasn't able to lose weight like I originally did. I don't have any ill-feelings toward WW but I am enjoying MFP. I am glad that have WW background to guide me.

mcarter99

I actually logged here and in my PointsPlus spreadsheet for the past 7 days, just to see how many Points I was eating. I did the new program for 8 weeks last year and only lost 2 lbs. and gave up. But I really liked it and thought it was just too many points for me. I'm going to double log again this week and then pick.

It's really no big deal to double log because I have to use a foods database to look up the macros anyway to calc the points. And I batch-cook for the week so I have a lot of repeat meals all week.

kaitiebeth89

I'm doing weight watchers and tracking my calories on MFP. I've been in ww for two months now and have lost about 25 pounds. For me, it's a good option because I'm learning about the right foods to eat. I love going to the meetings (my leader is great!) and socializing face to face with people who are in the same boat as me. I also find it helps keep me more accountable to eat right and exercise because 1. I have to weigh in on monday nights (no splurging on the weekends!) and 2. because of the cost (but to me it's worth it). I far as the "free" foods go, nothing is really free. You just have to be smart about it. Have an apple a day, maybe a banana with your breakfast, and veggies with your lunch and dinner. Just because fruits and veggies are considered free on ww, doesn't mean you can go crazy with them, especially fruits! WW also has a simply filling plan where you only eat foods considered power foods, and you don't need to track those. Hope I answered some of your questions.

coachkitten

I totally agree with what montana_girl said. It is like she took the words right out of my mouth!

I lost 108 lbs on Weight Watchers Momentum program which I loved. On that plan fruit had points to them but veggies were still mostly free. The new Points Plus program is good but when they told me fruits were free I honestly went a bit too far with that. Weight Watchers says that it is acceptable to eat 1 1/2 cups of strawberries and I was eating the whole container. It wasn't until I joined MFP that I realized actually how many extra calories my fruit "binges" were costing me. I know that no one ever got fat eating fruit but the calories still add up.

I have a ton of positive things to say about Weight Watchers and it was the structure that I needed when first starting my weight loss journey. But now I find that using MFP has been more helpful than Weight Watchers as I work on maintaining my loss. I have gained 19 lbs back and am slowly starting to get that back down and have found that counting calories at this point is working better.

CLCinNOLA

I really like Weight Watchers and lost 95 pounds there a few years back. I never got to goal, so I never got to where the meetings were free. I stopped going, lost my focus, and regained 65 pounds over several years.

The reason why I am here, is that it is free. I don't see anything wrong with Weight Watchers. I am new here, but have great hopes for MFP.

KnittingSoo

I've lost over 50 pounds since mid-January on WW - and I really like the plan. As others have mentioned, WW set your points level (effectively your calorie target) lower to allow for the zero point fruit. You also get weekly points that you spread out over the week however you like, which helps when fitting it evenings out, celebrations etc.

I've double tracked 3 of the weeks on plan and my total calories (including fruit and veg) falls in line with the recommended MFP (and Nutracheck)(and Fitbit!) calories.

I have considered changing to a free (or cheaper) option - but WW is working for me so I'll be staying there for now.

themegnapkin

This thread is directly relevant to me, since I signed up for WW today. I like MFP, but I don't like how it counts fruit calories. According to MFP, I go over my sugar grams every day just by eating a grapefruit and drinking a smoothie made with a banana and handful of berries. I like fruit and the way it makes me feel. So, I'm giving WW a test run, to see if it can help me lose weight without feeling so deprived.

Also - I tend to get a little obsessed when I count calories, and since I'm petite, plus close to my goal weight, my calorie allowance on MFP is small. I'm also active, and at 1,200 calories/day, I don't think I'm eating enough. I've joined the eat more to weigh less group, but it's difficult to get my head in the right space to feel comfortable eating 1,600 calories. I hope that by calling them points instead of calories, I worry about them.

jcamby

I used to be a die hard WW member - didn't think that I could lose weight without counting points but you know what??! YOU CAN!! Now that I've found MFP I'll never go back! Love MFP as it's free and the boards are great. WW was good and the meetings were helpful but you can't beat free and effective!

mmsilvia

I am a lifetime member. I loved the program (the old one) and learned how to eat right and cook healthy. I lost a lot of weight. I kept it off for a few years but, after awhile I slowly drifted away. I felt like 'I got this' but, really I didn't. Once I left the support that helped me lose it, I started to gain. I learned that it was also the support that helped me keep it off.

I am able to find the same support here on MFP and it's FREE. Granted I am able to attened meetings for free as a lifetime member but, I don't always have time to get to a scheduled meeting. And, I can't justify paying for their online program when I can use this one for free.

The bottom line is, follow what ever program works best for you while, eating healthy and exercise every day.

krisha36

Weight watchers never really worked for me. i hate cooking for just me its hard. but i am almost tempted to try it one more time.

hazelovesfood

You would be better off just counting cals coz ive done it and a first i lost then it just stopped. when i counted the cals i was eating it was probs too much, as i ate alot of free fruit.